Surfer bitten by shark at Jacksonville Beach

JACKSONVILLE BEACH, Fla. — At a glance, Jacksonville Beach seemed pretty calm. Surfers were in the water and kids were playing on the beach. But in between the seashells, bloody footprints sat as a reminder of danger lurking close by.

“We weren’t paying attention until they waved down the rescue and then we noticed that he was bleeding and dripping from his foot,” said local sunbather Hanna Patel.

Patel snapped this shot Wednesday afternoon of a 22-year-old Jacksonville surfer being transported by Ocean Rescue moments after authorities believe a shark bit his foot.

“We thought he had cut his toe. He still had the surfboard attached around his ankle,” Patel recalled.

The incident happened near 1st Street and 11th Avenue South. Police say the victim had multiple cuts on one foot, the largest about two to three inches long. The man told police he didn’t see what bit him.

Joey Moye ventured out into the water soon after, not thinking twice.

“All I saw was a lot of blood, them bandaging him up, and then I went straight back out there not thinking about a shark,” Moye said.

But that’s not the case for local beachgoer Mike Johnson. He says you won’t seem him doing much swimming with the sharks this holiday weekend.

“I’ll go waist deep maybe, but not very far out.” Johnson said.

This is believed to be the first shark bite in Duval County this year.